Book-support.



Nb. 326,767. PATENTED JULY 24, 1906.

H. L. oowmd.

BOOK SUPPORT. APPLICATION FILED. 001'. 7, 1995.

s, IVEYNITOH Nevis TTOHNE) d vvw W UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 24, 1906.

Application filed October 7, 1905. Serial No. 281,732.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HERBERT LEE OowINe, a citizen of the United States, residing in the borough of Brooklyn, city of New York, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in BoolSi1pports, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

My invention relates to improvements for supporting books upon the shelves commonly used in libraries and like places; and the object of my invention is to provide a booksupport which will be simple in construction, efiicient and durable in use, cheap in manuture, and readily stored when not in use.

faces.

In the drawings illustrating the principle of my invention and the best mode now known to me of applying that principle, Figure 1 is a perspective view of my new booksupport. Fig. 2 is a rear view of the same. Fig. 3 is a bottom lan view, and Fig. 4 a rear view, of a modi cation. Fig. 5 is a sectional view along the line A A, Fig. 1; and Fig. 6 is a detail hereinafter referred to.

My new book-support consists, essentially, of a closed receptacle preferably made of sheet metal. As shown in the drawings, the hollow closed receptacle has five sides or The front face a is vertical when the base I) rests upon a horizontal shelf, and this front face is placed against the last book in the row upon the shelf. The rear face a is inclined and is formed with a handle d, which is integral with the rear face 0 and is formed with overhanging edges 6 to leave grooves at the sides for the thumb and fingers in seizing the book-support. The handle d is punched from the metal of the rear face 0, and when the blank from which the rear face 0 is formedis rectangular this causes the edges f f to incline inwardly toward the bottom. The side faces 9 are therefore converging toward the rear and the base is a'trapezoid, as will be readily understood. One of the side faces 9 is formed with a hole h, the walls of which project inwardly and are screw-threaded to receive a cap 7 which when in position and screwed home has its top flush with the side face g. The cap 7: is screwed home by means of a U-shaped or two-pronged wrench, the ends of which engage in the'holes j. This construction prevents tampering with the screw-cap 'i after it is screwed into place. In order to give the book-support sufficient weight to resist the pressure of the books,

the receptacle is filled through the hole h with sand or other readily-obtainable ponderable substance.

The rear face may be formed from a blank having the shape of a trapezoid and in such manner that the material to form the handle having been forced out the inclined edges of the trapezium are made parallel, and the rear face assumes the form in contour of a rectangle. This is shown in Fig. 4, where the handle (1 does not curve inwardly near its bottom, but continues on to meet an ear 7c, formed upon the base I), Fig. 3. This ear is serves to give increased resistance to tipping without adding materially to the weight and forms a point for the attachment of the handle d, as will be clearly understood from a careful inspection of Figs. 3 and 4.

In order to prevent slipping of the device upon the shelf, strips m of non-slippable material-such as rubber, lead, or the like may be secured to the base. Further, the base may be provided with a downwardlyprojecting lug n, adapted to engage a central groove in the shelf.

Other forms of handle may be provided, as shown in Fig. 6, in which a strap-handle 0 is securely attached to the rear face p.

When unfilled, my book-support is very light, and therefore a large number may be stored without taxing the strength of the supporting fioor-beams. Furthermore, the wedge shape of the device permits one to store a large number in a small space. No skilled labor is necessary to fill the device for use, and when it is desired to discontinue its use the device may be readily emptied preparatory to its being stored. In the use of my new device the end books do not have to be raised to permit of the insertion of a projecting base, nor are they subjected to the wear produced by working such a base beneath the books into position. In its preferred form my new support does not require a special form of shelf, but may be used on the ordinary plain shelf, thereby contributing to the low cost of installation.

What I claim is- 1. A book-support made up of sheet material and having a base, a face connected with said base and adapted to lie fiat against the books, a face connecting the upper ed e of the first-named face and the rear edge 0 said -base and provided with a handle and side faces to form a closed receptacle.

2. A book-support made up of a front face adapted to rest against the books; a base at substantially right angles to said front face and adapted to rest upon a shelf, said base being formed with an ear projecting from one of its sides; a rear face connecting said front face and said base, said rear face being formed With a handle secured to said ear; and side faces connecting said front face, rear face and base to form aclosed receptacle. 3. A book-support made up of sheet material and having a base, a face connected With said base and adapted to lie flat. against the books, a face connecting the upper edge of the first-named face and the rear edge of said base, and side faces to form a receptacle nor- 15 the base being provided with an integral 2o handle.

HERBERT LEE COWING.

Witnesses JAMES HAMILTON, MARGARET HAMILTON. 

